Are you feeling… Lawless!?

Hey, we’re one month into 2013 and I’m afraid to say that while I’ve been up to quite a few things, I don’t actually feel like I’ve done anything. Is that a bad thing? I’ve got no idea. There’s definite progress with some things but others… not so much.

Since I missed out on the whole “let’s take a pic in January so we can look back later, yay, YOLO!!!” thing in January, I took one at the start of February. Looking distinctly tired and out of it to be honest as I had been feeling a bit shit for the week and couldn’t be arsed with uni at this point lol.

Anyway, I was cheered up the next day when Heather and I met up with Tanya and Gordon for a bit of lunch (and a few drinks ;)). It was great seeing them again as we hadn’t met up since October. We got slightly tipsy and drew pictures. Honestly hoping their on the wall of the pub next time I go in lol – I’ll be checking!

Been working out properly again as well. As well as my usual dumbbells-can’t-be-beat mindset, I’ve been trying out kettlebells. I’m really impressed with the workout a single kettlebell can give you if you go at it properly without resting between sets. I was always a bit iffy about trying them out for the whole cardio-and-strength-in-one thing but it seems to get the heart pumping as well as burning my arms. Great workout, and a permanent piece of equipment in my workouts.

As for uni, it’s been… boring. I don’t like admitting to being bored but I’ve almost fallen asleep in some lectures and I feel like I’m not learning anything new. Maybe it’s a good thing – we’ll see once the exam comes. Incidentally, the exam is on my fucking birthday so I’m not liking that either but hey, double reason for celebrations afterward!

Earlier in January I said that there would be a blog post regarding my new years resolutions (or goals, I suppose). I’m not sure how comfortable I actually am with that at the moment so I’ll just say that I’ll post updates whenever I do anything exciting and if it relates to the goals I had in my head at the start of the year, I’ll be sure to write them out and keep updating my progress. Incidentally, one thing I didn’t plan that should be starting in a couple of weeks is a collaboration with Martin. I won’t go into too much detail here as he wants to record a new podcast to introduce it but it involves me writing articles/blog posts for his website with the hope that we can keep up a constant stream of original content to grow an idea we tried out a few years but let die before it even began.

I can’t end this post without mentioning Valentine’s Day. It was awesome. Seriously. So much bad shit happened to me on Valentine’s Day from ear buds breaking, losing my bus ticket, being stuck in traffic for an hour etc. and I still finished the day thinking everything was right with the world. Heather completely spoiled me; clothes, Lucky Charms (BEST CEREAL FUCKING EVER!!!), Davidoff: The Game aftershave, a watch and Lawless! She knows me so well. She was completely spoiled as well obviously.

That leads us up to today where we’ve started tidying the entire house. I’m getting completely sick of not being able to find stuff when I want and I’d rather have everything in its proper place so I can get a move on with other projects. Also ordered a new wardrobe and drawers for the bedroom which is exciting in a way as we decorated last year but only bought a new bed rather than a full set of furniture.

So, that’s about it for the month so far really. I’ll leave you with my favourite Lawless quote. Take care.

First rant of 2013 :D

I’m sure I’ve touched on this before but people with a keyboard and an internet connection who start uploading their opinions, in various formats, at every opportunity, in the most part just to be controversial do my fucking head in. Of course everyone is entitled to their own opinions, and no one should ever have their opinion taken away from them. However, when you start to think that your opinions stand above your peers, it’s time to take a step back, reevaluate and think about what you’re trying to put across. This is especially true if you are passionate about what you’re saying; people are more willing to take your opinion on board and pay more attention if they can see that you’re a reasonable and intelligent person.

On this same subject, the people who say “that’s my opinion” and refuse to change it no matter what are really just dumb fucking cunts. I’m sorry, I know that you believe that your opinion is fucking bullet proof and without flaw but when new evidence is put in front of you, making all or part of your opinion obsolete, you NEED to change it. It’s not opinion when it goes against fact, it’s just stupidity. Dictionary.com defines opinion as ‘a belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.’ Therefore, your opinion should change as you acquire more knowledge, helping to make your belief or judgement more solid. It’s common sense, for fuck sake. You do, however, get people who refuse to listen to any other opinion on certain subjects. I believe these people to be ignorant cunts to be quite honest and can’t see how anyone with that mindset can ever become a successful or influential person.

Finally, there are the people who form an opinion on something without any prior knowledge of the subject matter. This is mostly seen in media when people choose to hate on a new movie, artist, book etc. without actually watching, listening or reading. An example of this is when you want to see a new movie, mention it to someone and they say, “Dude, don’t watch that shit!”, to which your natural response is to ask if they watched it and their response is, “No, it’s just shit.” THE FUCK!?!?!! Just… no, fuck off, you cunt! Don’t form an opinion on something before giving it a go especially if your opinion is based on the opinions of others who feel the need to share it at the top of their voice (or in big CAPS LOCK text!). Notice that I’m making the assumption that they form their opinion based on what others are saying; this is me being generous as many of them just pull the opinion out of the air to be, altogether now, CONTROVERSIAL – it’s the new black.

Anyway, the above is all just my opinion. I’m an opinionated guy and I like to talk to other opinionated people when they have the intelligence or drive to actually accrue knowledge on a particular subject. Do I think my opinion is going to matter to everyone, or anyone at all for that matter? No. I don’t write this blog to try and get hits. Fuck, if I was trying to get hits, I wouldn’t go 7 months without posting and I’d actually link people to it instead of getting 1 hit a day! No, I write this blog to… actually, I don’t have a clue why I write this blog. I think it just lets me get my thoughts in order sometimes.

I’m done for now, take care.

P.S. Part of my uni coursework this year is to produce an online portfolio, including a blog. I’m going to fail.

Hello 2013: Looking Back at 2012

Well, shit, I left it a while between blog posts lol… I suppose time just got the better of me but now it’s January and time to look back at what happened in the last 12 months. I can’t remember most of what I got up to but I’ll just summarise a few points.

At the start of the year I was involved in planning the wedding event for charity. When I started doing it, I wasn’t into the idea and as time went on, I wasn’t enjoying the planning but I done what I had to anyway and we got there in the end. It wasn’t a great success but we didn’t do too badly and there were a few laughs along the way. I also started a new workout plan around this time and lost a bit more weight, had a few drinks and good times etc.

Jumping ahead to summer, it was probably the best summer I’ve ever had. I spent nearly every day with Heather, had loads of good times, spoiled her for her 21^st, passed college with an A and got into uni so yeah, good times.

I started uni in September and realised it was gonna take up much more time than I anticipated but figured it would be worth it in the end. It’s not going badly but I’m really not into the way some of the course material is taught; a lot of is based around team working which is obviously important but it takes up so much time and is used as filler most of the time. I honestly think it’s in there so lecturers can be lazy and mark multiple students at once. But yeah, it’s not too bad and I’ve met some pretty good people so that’s all good. It was a month after starting uni that I finally met up with Tanya and had a few drinks. Made me miss college drinking days 😦

The rest of the year was pretty much just full of uni stuff and lots of days spent in Glasgow. Heather got 8 new piercings; lip and top of her ear which I got her for her anniversary and 6 more ear piercings – 1 in each year.

Christmas was spent with Heather and my family. This year, we ended up going way over budget for each other’s presents but didn’t get any little things as “filler” so we were both really spoiled but it was worth it. Heather also had loads of time off work; Christmas, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day because she’s changed her contract to working every fortnight now rather than weekly shifts.

That’s it, mainly because this is just meant as a quick post, it’s getting late, I can’t be arsed checking facebook or phone photos etc. to find out what else I got up to and because I’m not really into looking at the past and prefer looking towards the future.

I’m starting 2013 smarter, healthier, wealthier and much happier than I started 2012 and for once, I can actually envision taking control of everything around me and driving on towards the things I want in life. I’m sure I’ll write another blog post regarding my goals for the year etc. but for now I’ll just say Happy New Year and take care. It’s gonna be a great year.

Are we, personally, becoming more dependant on computers?

Martin’s PC recently broke down completely.  He’s tried everything to fix it, swapping out all the components etc. but there’s been no joy so far.  A side effect of this is him realising how much he uses/needs his computer and coming to the conclusion that we’re all becoming more dependant on computers.  I thought about this for a while and can’t help but disagree.  To a certain degree he’s right as more and more businesses, colleges etc. become computer based and switch to online forms etc. but I believe that for a personal user the need to use a computer is self-inflicted.  While I discuss this please keep in mind that we are talking about computers and not about mobile phones etc. which I won’t get into.

First of all there’s the social aspect; facebook, twitter, etc. that some people feel they can’t live without.  I feel that the amount of time people spend on these social networks and how much they rely on them for interaction with friends is mainly due to the fact that they are an always on resource rather than them being the most efficient way to communicate.  I find that when I really need to speak to someone I send them a text, call them or go see them in person rather than hoping that they log on to one of the above.  I also believe that if you can’t use phone, text or face-to-face contact to get hold of someone or interact that said person isn’t necessary in your daily life and therefore the choice to contact them is a by-product of using a computer.  Self-inflicted.

Next, we have writing.  What’s wrong with using pen and paper?  I don’t write as much as I used to but when I do I actually prefer writing with pen and paper instead of using a computer.  I don’t feel like it lessens my ability to write at all.  It’s true that publishers etc. are looking for manuscripts to be word processed correctly these days but that’s going into the business side of things rather than talking about personal use.  When it comes to writing articles for a blog, website etc. this is again a choice which you are making because you have a computer and not a task being forced upon you.  However, using modern mobile technology it’s very possible to still upload articles to the internet, email etc. so not having a computer isn’t an excuse for not writing or posting said articles if you wish to do so but it’s important to remember that, unless working for a company, it is a choice you make.  Self-inflicted.

Gaming.  Gaming has now become a large part of many people’s lives in terms of the amount of free time it consumes.  What was once looked on as lazy, nerdy etc. hobby has become widespread.  The question is, do you need a computer to play games?  The answer is, no.  Having a computer gives you access to some games which consoles don’t, mainly MMOs and some strategy-type games although I’m starting to see a lot less strategy games appearing in the current market and a lot of those make it consoles anyway.  As for MMOs, you can actually play some MMOs using mobile technology these days which is a huge step forward.  However, let’s just say that you can only play the game you want to play on a computer and not on a console or mobile.  Once again it’s a case of you choosing to play that game.  Self-inflicted.

I could go on; news, watching tv, movies etc. but I feel like I’ll just become repetitive and boring if I haven’t already.  The point is that the level of dependence we personally have on computers is entirely down to the choices we make.  All the dependencies we feel we have on computers are due to us having computers in the first place and therefore choosing to partake in certain activities which make use of them.  That’s just my personal opinion but as to whether a high dependence is a bad thing, I won’t comment as I don’t wish to offend either side.

Rant

First of all, I want to rant about people who say something or someone is shit yet still either watch, listen, talk to, buy or follow all the news, decisions, hype etc. etc. surrounding it e.g. people who say they hate an actor then go out and watch one of his movies in the cinema just so they can then bitch about how much they hate him and how shit the movie was, people who say they hate a sport then watch it so they can bitch about how bad it is and how bad the players were, people who say they hate a singer then listen to their latest songs just so they can say it was shit.  What is the fucking point in putting yourself through something you supposedly don’t like just so you can then tell people you don’t like it?  There isn’t one.  It’s completely pointless and just wastes your time and the time of the people who have to listen to the amount of shit you spew from that hole in your face.  If I don’t like something/someone, I don’t go out my way to have that shit around me, I ignore it/them.  Don’t feel you have to put yourself through something just so you can have some sort of meaningless fucking opinion.  I know some people base their lives around having an opinion in order to make themselves feel controversial and edgy but lets be fair, these people are cunts.  My only wish is that I could get through the rest of my life without having to deal with them and have them piss me off but unfortunately I can’t, nor can I ignore when it’s put in my face so yeah, if you’re reading this and you’re feeling offended because you do this type of shit then fuck you but have a nice day because I refuse to give you the satisfaction of hating you and adding to your otherwise meaningless, angst driven life.  Next!

The people on facebook (and twitter?) who seem to think that if they don’t post about going to the gym then they won’t see any results.  Give me a fucking break.  If you have time during your “hardcore, killer workout” to sit on facebook and have a bit of banter then you’re doing it fucking wrong.  If you want to workout, workout, don’t fucking talk about it.  Also, I realise that I occassionally post about the workouts I’ve been doing or planning but I feel that I’m actually posting in a relatively private environment and actually going through with all my fitness plans that I can make an exception for myself in this case.  Phew, don’t have to hate myself just yet… next!

What have we got left?  Ah, one of my favourites, the people who don’t try to work to their potential.  Now, I have absolutely nothing against people who are content to just go with the flow and see where life takes them but I do have a problem with people who come up with these big, thought through ideas and don’t do anything with them.  Even this isn’t enough to make me rant though, what really gets to me is that they make no fucking sensible justification for not carrying their plans out!  They find excuses not to do it, they blame other people, they pretend that it doesn’t matter to them anymore… bullshit!  Everyone is the master of their own fucking life and with a bit of planning, a bit of passion and a lot of hardwork people can achieve anything.  I used to dream of being a writer, I actually used to write quite often but I stopped, partly due to personal reasons and partly because I knew that I had to do something a bit more solid with a more stable outcome i.e. college.  I still hold the dream of being a writer and I have made some very small plans which I’m following through on at the moment but I realise my limitations due to time contraints etc. that I know I won’t be able to become a successful writer for many years, if ever.  I’m being realistic, it’s hard but it’s necessary.  Do I give up?  No, I postpone the outcome.  What pisses me off are the people who choose to quit.

This was a very much unplanned post but I had a spare 20 minutes.  I might delete it later to get rid of the unnecessary swearing, who knows?  Either way, take care.

It’s been a while (again!)

Well, I’ve finally finished college so I thought I’d finally update the blog.

I got As in both of my graded unit exams at college so I’m off to Caledonian University in September to study Management, Technology and Enterprise.  There’s not much else to say about it at the moment to be honest as I’m just waiting for them to get confirmation of my grades etc.

As for my health/fitness, I haven’t lost too much more weight – I think only 2 or 3lbs since I last posted but my body has continued to change for the better which is always nice.  I’ve finally got back into cardio so I should see some extra lbs shift soon.  For cardio I’ve started jogging and short sprints a couple of times a week coupled with The Pit (UFC) workout dvd which is really good but very advanced in some ways which will keep me improving over time.  I’m still lifting but only 3 times a week or so now and only doing press-ups as the dvd demands.  I’ve also cut out squat days except when the dvd asks for them.

I’ve spoke about video games before so I might as well mention what I’ve been playing lately.  One of my friends got me playing World of Warcraft again after two years away from the game but that only lasted a month.  Other than that, I played a bit of Majesty 2 – awesome game, check it out – and Final Fantasy XIII which is good but a bit repetitive if you try to do everything you can.

As for music, I haven’t been listening to anything really new or outstanding but I did discover Abby Power and Kelsey – two London girls with amazing voices – while browsing YouTube.  Abby Power’s lyrics can be amazing and Kelsey just has a great voice or as I said on facebook, she’s Tulisa with double the vocal and triple the looks.  I won’t lie, it helps that they’re both pretty hot.

Well, it seems like we’re in some sort of Summer of Sport type situation at the moment what with Euro 2012, Wimbledon and the Olympics.  Firstly, it’s the Euro 2012 final tomorrow, Italy v Spain.  I predict a win for Italy.  Wimdledon, I predict a Murray v Federer final for the men with Murray hopefully coming out on top and a Sharapova v Azarenka/Williams final for the women with Azarenka taking it.  As for the Olympics… I’m not that interested.

Movies… I’ve only been to the cinema twice this year and both of those have been in the last two weeks.  The Avengers was amazing, easily the best movie I’ve seen in a long time.  If you haven’t seen it, you need to.  Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter was good but not as great as it seemed from the trailers.  I went into it expecting a Sherlock Holmes meets Van Helsing type situation but it’s really not like that at all despite some of the same sort of shots throughout the film.  I doubt I’ll bother buying the dvd when it’s released but it is a good movie and worth seeing at least once if only because the vampires don’t fucking sparkle.